The present invention relates to a point management server which gives rewards to users in order to expedite the download of Internet-based programs.
Various Internet businesses are being put to practical use by using a free network environment like the Internet. Especially, the download of modifier files for carrying out the modification of software (refer to publication of patent applications No. 2002-207599, JP) and download services for games, music, images, and the like (refer to publication of patent applications No. 2002-245263, JP) are increasing. For example, when downloading music files, a browser is activated, connection is made to a site providing the music, and the music files may be downloaded. Also, when downloading takes place, a lot of downloading services give to the user a fixed set of points or rewards according to use.
Furthermore, as long as the providers of Internet business services operate their sites 24 hours a day, users can carry out downloads anytime. However, the time period of highest Internet use is actually from 10 p.m. to 3 a.m. Accordingly, the use of downloading services in this time period is also high. For this reason, the access of many users becomes concentrated in a specific time period.
Conventional technology gave no thought to the traffic situation of networks and contents servers being used. For this reason, the use of users becomes concentrated for a specific time. When the downloads of many users become concentrated at a given time, access concentration exceeds the upper limit of that service. Therefore, the processing ability of the server providing the download service is exceeded. This exceeding of the processing ability of the server has been a cause of communication failure.